This occasional blog mainly focussed on historical aspects of handball in the UK with contributions from individuals involved going back to the late 50s when handball arrived in Hull.
The contributions are likely to increasingly focus on contemporary issues as the sport hopefully grows in popularity.

Friday, 27 March 2009

The Bristol Tournament was the most popular tounament in the UK during the late '70s and through the '80s. The tournament named 'Inter' was usually held on the Saturday and Sunday of the May Spring Bank Holiday and brought together clubs from across Britain along with teams (usually four) from Europe. The six scans here are of programmes from four of the tournaments showing the high profile sponsorship that the weekend attracted. The event was the mastermind of Whitchurch Handball Club's Tim Rowbottom and the rise and fall of the tournament very much followed the fortunes of the club.

During the first few years the tournament was a ten-club male tournament and was won three years running (1978-1980) by Fortuna Geleen from the Netherlands. The tounament reached its peak in the mid-80s; the scan of the line up for 1984 shows a 6-team female tournament with three teams from Europe (Lugi fielded two teams) and 15 men's teams playing in a 10-team indoor tournament and the remaining 5 playing in a 5-team outdoor tournament. This reflects the fact that the event was so popular that there was a waiting list for participation in the main event. The popularity of the event is further supported by the fact that the tournament had been moved to the first weekend in June which made it easier to attract European participants since this was a holiday weekend in a number of countries.

By 1988 Bristol no longer had a club and the tournament was in danger of not taking place but such was the popularity of the event that officials from other clubs, particularly Keith Clark from Liverpool, helped Tim organise the event in the absence of local support.

Tuesday, 24 March 2009

This is another post showing pages from the 1983 Cup Final. The pages show details of the ladies finalists Robert Jenkins (Ruislip Eagles) Handball Club and Wakefield Metros Handball Club. Robert Jenkins won the final 15-14. The report below is taken from 'Word is ...' No.6 which was the BHA official journal at the time.

Monday, 16 March 2009

This is the photo and player profiles of the Liverpool team for the 1983 British Cup Final. As in the previous post there may be a few errors which I have overlooked during the copy from the pdf of the this post. Fortunately I spotted the player who had been copied across as a Minger!

Paul DaviesGoalkeeper. 22yrs. old. 5'10'tall. Welsh lnternational. Started off as a court player and decided to play in goal 4 years ago. A good prospect for future G.B. team.

Mick Hegarty (coach)Left Back. 28yrs. old. 6'3". Welsh and G.B. lnternational. Current Men's G.B. coach. Hoping for his first major domestic honour as a club coach.

Les DaviesCentre Back. 24yrs. old. 6'1". Welsh lnternational. Although he has never gained full international honours, he is one of the best defenders in the country.

Tommy GarnettWinger.20yrs. old. 5'8. Another product of their youth policy who has gone on to gain international honours at U/21 level.

Paul ChurchLeft Wing. 25yrs. old. 5'10'. England and G.B. lnternational. Last season's player of the year at Liverpool H.C. His recent form has brought him back onto the international scene after a two year absence.

Phil Church (captain)Centre Back. 22yrs. old. 5'9'. England and G.B. lnternational. He has had an injury prone season, but he has managed to fight his way back to fitness for this final.

Steph JonesRight Wing. 25yrs. old- 6'0'. England and G.B. Steph has played internationally for eight years making him the most experienced winger in the country.

Joe NolanLeft Back. 22yrs. old. 6'4'.G. B, U/21 international. He has promised much over the past three seasons and with consistency in his game will become an extremely good player.

Peter lrvingLine Player. 25yrs. old. 6'1". Welsh lnternational. one of the best line players in the country.

Paul ForesterRight Back . 25yrs. old. 6'1". England lnternational. A much improved player over the past two seasons. On current form he will not be long in gaining his first full international for G.B.

Dave WoodsLeft back 21 yrs. old. 6'1". Dave only_began.playing two years ago and he has already gained international recognition at England U/21 level.

Dave HenaghanGoalkeeper 30 yrs. old. 6'2".England and G.B. lnternational. A remarkable player. He is probably the only player in the country to_have played in every position at top domestic level. He was a court player from 1973-1980. Then he went in goal and fought his way to become one of the top three keepers in the country. He is still a formibable court player and in fact played out and scored several goals in Liverpool's European Cup venture last season.

Dave LevyRight wing. 22yrs. old. 5'10''. Dave has played for 3 years. He has just broken into the first team squad. lf a few more players in the country showed his determination and dedication, the standard of handball would rise dramiatically.

Steve FarrellyWinger' 20yrs. old. 6'1''. An example of Keith Clark's youth policy, who was recently chosen to play for England U/21's against Scotland.

Tommy McNabLine Player 25yrs. old. 5'9". He was introduced to the game through his wife, Chris,who plays for Halewood. Although he has played for only two seasons, he has shown a remarkable aptitude for the game.

Keith ClarkLine Player. 5'10". 28yrs. old. Former G.B. lnternational. Original founder member of Liverpool H.C. 13years ago. His youth policy has given L.H.C.the very sound base of up and coming talent in the club.

Saturday, 14 March 2009

Following on from the last post this one has a photo of the Brentwood team from the cup final programme and the text is the player profiles. Please don't complain about any typos or other strange text. The text was copied from a pdf file of the programme and has been edited but probably still contains errors. I'll post more of the programme soon with the Liverpool men next. I'd have posted the pdf of the programme but unfortunately it exceeds the maximum memory allowed for posting here.

The Brentwood team shown was the dominent force in UK handball during the late 70s and early 80s but this final was a turning point in the history of British Handball with Liverpool gaining the first of thier many honours.

No. 1 David Hendrick, Age:20Occupation: Bank OfficialGoalkeepers must possess fast reactions. courage and good ball sense. David hasall of these abilities and with an impressive array of lnternational appearances forboth Club and Counrty behind him, he will undoubtedly play a key role in this final.

No. 2 Francois Joli Age: 25Occupation : GeophysicistFrancois joined Brentwood at the beginning of the current season and has proved akey man in the Brentwood attack, particularly from his favourite leftwing losition.However, Francois would be the first to admit that adapting from the fluid Frenchstyle of Handball to the more physical British game is not an easy move!

No.3 Paul Dempsey Age: 18Occupation : Gr-eengrocery R-etailerln spite of being the youngest player in the club, Paul shows strength, ability andagility on court comparable with any of the more senior players in the country. Healready has an impressive lnternational record and is one of the top goal scorers inthe National league this season. A man worth watching!

No.4 Billy Hayburn Age: 25Occupation: StudentUntil his departure for Nottingham University, Billy was one of the stars of the Scottish Leagues and when asked to join Brentwood he seized the opportunity with both hands. His skills and effortless goal scoring ability make him a worthy addition to any team. Billy also has an extensive lnternational record.

No.5 Anthony Tropp Age:22Occupation : lnsurance Broker/ Sports RetailerA veteran of The Robert Jenkins Club in South Ruislip, Tony joined Brentwood toassist his training for the National Team. Since that time he has become a keymember dominating the position of Left Wing in attack and scoring spectacular goals from this position.

No. 6 Paul Rolls Age: 28Occupation : Commercial PrinterA founder member of the Club. Paul has been involved in just about every aspect ofthe Club's set-up at one time or another. An ex-lnternational, he is now in theunenviable situation of having to take the place of Goran Gazivoda as coach ofBrentwood, as well as playing for the team.

No.7 Larry Beard Age: 23Occupation: Analyst - Ford Motor Co.A few years ago Larry was heralded as the prodigy of British. Handball. playing hisfirst iniernational at the tender age of 15. Now at the peak of his handball career hehas an inteinational record as long as his shooting arm and will no doubt play aleading role in the Cup Final with his total commitment to victory.

No.8 Anthony Easter Age: 21Occupation: Loss AdjusterThis Season UJinS ni6 first in competitive handball, Tony has yet to reach his peakperformance. Hoiwever his experibnce and confidence irow with every game andhis raw enthusiasm for the spbrt will undoubtedly carry him through the final.

No.9 Graham Harris Age: 35(ish)Occupation : Companv Director4". SidJ"Oer .5mb'er of the Club, Graham has recently rejoined the team after aiiu. uear break, due to work commitments in other parts of the country' He islnoti,ei oi tne'CtuU's ex-lnternationals and is the ideal man for boosting teantmorlie anO settlin-g the nerves. prior to a big event. He is also a strong and ableplayer!

No. 10 Gary Beechener Age: 25Occuriation : lnternational Bond DealerGary, another of the Club's well established players, has also represented hiscouirtry at lnternational level. Formerly a strong-wing Player, he now plays as a lineattacker and has formed a new dimension in the Brentwood attack with hisspectacular "lay out" shots.

No.11 Anthony Davis Age:26Occuoation: lnternational Bank OfficialAnother of the founder members,Tony, formerly the Club Chairman and nowCaptain of the team, has also played at all levels of lnternational competition, fromSchools to World Championships. One of the three left handers in the team, Tonyhas built his reputation as a right-wing player but now interchanges with right halfposition in attack.

No. 12 Simon Perry Age:20Occupation: StudentAlienated from the team through studying commitments, Simon's- handball careerhas never quite been allowed to reach-its peak. However with studies behind him astrong future is assured.

No.13 Danny Sweeney Age:28Occupation : ElectricianAlways an aggressive player, Danny has long been a key figure in the left halfposition. Another of the Club's lnternational players, his stamina, gained fromtraining for marathon running, is usually an important factor in his game.

No. 15 Daren Bartlet Age: 20Occupation: FiremanAnother player who has been away from the Club due to career trainingcommitment, Daren is beginning to gain the strength required for the difficultposition of line player in attack. He has also represented his country at Juniorlnternational level.

No. 16 Tom Smith Age: (lmmaterial!)Occupation: ComPuter SYstemTom is unashamedly one of the veteran players of the Club.However he still workshard on the promotional side of the game and for the Club. He is still more thancapable of hdlding his own in goal, at any level in British Handball, and will no doubtrise to the occasion in the Cup.

Monday, 9 March 2009

The scans here are two pages from 'Word is ...' number 6 which was a newsletter published by the British Handball Association in the early '80s. The pages 3 and 7 show a report on the 1983 British Cup Final and end of season tables for the 1983 season respectively.

The report on the final is written by Ian Harris and summarises Liverpool's 14-13 win over Brentwood '72. It was Brentwood's first league or cup defeat since 1977/78 and Liverpool's first major honour.

The 'Results' page shows that Brentwood '72 were Men's English League champions and Wakefield Metros winning the ladies national league. In Scotland East Kilbride '82 were men's champions and Strathclyde the women's champions. The page shows a British Chamionship for the women won by Wakefield but there is no evidence of a men's play-off.

Towards the foot of the page 'Other Leagues' are for men Salford with 4 teams and Merseyside with 7 teams, and for women Greater Manchester with 4 teams and Merseyside with 5 teams. The statistics continue on to page 8 (not shown) with details of the Midland league and the GLSE league both of which were won by Milton Keynes.

Saturday, 7 March 2009

This entry is a page from the Midland Handball Association Directory 1982. The Directory has a comprehensive array of data about not just the Midlands Association in 1982 but also British Handball at the time. The page shown shows details of the British Cup and English League in 1982 and also shows the winners of the competitions from 1977 to 1982. The page stands as evidence of the dominance of Brentwood '72 at the time.